Day of the Dead–Inspired Flowers From the Creative Mind Behind the Met Gala, Raúl Àvila

When Raúl Àvila was first starting out as an assistant to the great event planner Robert Isabell, where he worked for the first 14 years of his career, his mentor gave him a few wise words of advice: “He taught me to be true to myself, to trust my first instinct, and that when it comes to event design, the sky is the limit—dream big, never small.” The notion of bigger is better is something that Àvila has since carried out in his own event planning business and through his work producing stunning events for clients like Dior, Lanvin, Marc Jacobs, and Vogue. In fact, he is the man who has been responsible for some of the most incredible floral creations at the Met Gala, including this year’s 12,500-pound chinoiserie vase made entirely of roses—250,000 of them.

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Photo: BFA

While many of Àvila’s arrangements can be quite extravagant depending on the client and the space, the Bogotá-born planner isn’t one to shy away from simplicity. “When I do arrangements, I prefer to use one type of flower to be understated and to not overwhelm the room,” he says. “The price of a flower is really not important to me. If they look and smell beautiful, then I will use them.” That includes the varieties that Àvila most recently used to create arrangements inspired by the graphic images on Mexican loteria cards and the country’s Day of the Dead holiday, which falls on November 1. “I wanted to use flowers that are typically used in Mexico, like carnations, zinnias, gladiolus, marigolds, and calla lilies,” he explains. “As a Latin person, we use all of these to make arrangements for funerals or to leave at the cemetery, as they are known to last a long time.” For his interpretation, Àvila used mainly painted ceramic vases. “I tend to not use glass; I prefer vintage ceramic and I like to use one color of a flower that blends well with the vase.” The idea was to produce small bouquets that pack striking bold hues and strong, sweet smells.

For Àvila, this is what floral design is really all about: “Working on a smaller scale like this allows you to really focus on every little detail and the subtleties that make a great impact.”